Wednesday, December 9, 2009

I didn't realize how thrilled I would feel to be vending at BazBizBos this past Sunday, it kind of surprised me! But I guess it makes sense. Three years ago, before I had even put anything in my fledgling Etsy shop, Dell and I attended BazBiz in the same location, the Cyclorama in Boston's South End.

It was then I realized, these are my peeps! These tattooed and pierced ladies with cool glasses were making quirky crafts and selling them and I wanted in. I was and am not tattooed or particularly extensively pierced, but I had been making things and selling them for almost 20 years. This new craft revolution really spoke to me. I had been a bit of a loner in my endeavors and now I had a possible peer group. I filled my Etsy shop with the goods I had been making forever: polymer clay egg ornaments and bead and metal jewelry. The next year I applied to BazBiz but did not get juried in! I realized I was probably not Bizarre enough. My goods were very mainstream.

Without really meaning to, over the next two years my style started to lean more toward what I can only describe as an Etsy aesthetic. I took up needle felting and started producing more modern items. Last year I did not apply to BazBiz, I did two other amazing holiday shows instead. This year I got up the nerve to try again and I got in! And after two years in other venues, BazBiz was back at the Cyclorama where my excitement had been renewed about what would eventually become my full time career. I could not shake the feeling that I had won a contest and was going to play on stage with my favorite band! I grinned ear to ear from 9:30 til 7.

I was lucky and made excellent sales, but the most fun for me was meeting a whole host of humans I had heretofore only "internet known". Some for years! Some who had changed my life! Fer reals. It was an amazing day. I loved being near my dear friend Candace of The Intuitive Garden and next to Elise of Argyle Whale whom I have admired from afar (on Flickr and through her excellent tweets). I was so grateful to Dell for hanging out and helping me all day, even taking the blame when I stepped on his glasses ("I'm sure I put them in a bad place!"). I was actually, miraculously able to fix them so he could drive us home. And he is the one who took all these great pictures documenting the day.

Huge thanks to the organizers of this wonderful show! And I hope I get in again next year :)

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Before the show, Dell and I spent a lovely Thanksgiving afternoon with mom and dad at the house I grew up in.

The show went well though doing 3 day shows is hard! Luckily, I married a really nice guy who helped me through it all. I am so grateful I sold well and had to spend my nights making more goods for the next day. I would also like to express appreciation for my friends and family who have given me strength and encouragement at this exciting but truly stressful time, I couldn't do this without them!

Sunday night we packed my table up and went out to dinner at the Beerworks in Lowell, which we love.